San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1887-03-23
What Jay Gould Gould Accomplish.

Editor LIGHT
Jay Gould 10 a recent interview with
a reporter OF the New York Times,
made the following remark and repeated
IL four times: "Aner all, what does any
man get In this world except something
TO eat and something TO wear, aud some
where to live" Food and clothes and
q place TO sleep, that's all man gets In
this world. don't care how rich he 10. :"
Jay Gould was entirely correct, though
HIS remark can boast Of no originality.
He did not even treat IL to new dress.
Gould Is estimated TO be worth one nun
dre,i and tittv millions Of dollars, yet
hts charities hardly keep place win the
immensely Of mis- wealth, sInOr he uld
afford TO devote half a million To bene'
VIOLENT purposes every year, without the
least per.onai privation or selfd-niHl.
II ne real Zrs tina enOrm"u' wealth IL
.up-rfluOus that IL brI"gs Increased
toll aud care TO its po'se-sor ana ala
not thing TO his stock ui cnnIentW"ni -
why does h. refrain from cOnsecraIihg
hi annual income IL CHARITY ana O-hr-
vol~nor during his life, so that ne may
enjoy The pleasing satisfaction of con
ten plating The happiness occssioDed by
MIN? Why does he not devote one OF
his superfiu"us millions 70 the erection
and endO~ ment OF q home for aged ana
poor widows; anotb-r superfiuuus mil
lion 10 the erection and endowment OF a
home ( r the aged and poor m-n; stu
another to- the erection and endowment
~ home for fallen women who wish To
reform, and another To the -du 3ation OF
pror boys and girls? These things
would only consume four millions
~ his sup rfiuOus wealth; he would
never mIss the money. yet these
noble charities would eiubalm his name
and memory for all time TO come. He
GOULD execute these noble charities In
his life time.
Let US ace; a building suitable for the
scconmod ,iion Of 100 aged and poor
widows could be erected and furnished
for $3.50 O0O and $75O.000 the balance OF
the million. could oe loaned our, and the
income applied to their support, II
would not take $40. 600 per year TO sup
would be true in regard to the home for
aged poor men, and OF the home for fall
len women. As soon as one OF the H.
mates of any OF these three homes died,
the vacancy could be- filled without the
least trouble. What q noble charity
would IL be, to furnish food. clothes and
shelter to three hundred homeless and
moDeyless persons every year for CEN
turtles to come. A more glorious memo
rial no man could leave behind him when
no dies.
then, he could devote still another
nilli"n to the erection and endowment
Of a building similar TO what they have
IN Paris-where poor men and women.
out OF employ ment and destitute OF
money, could be lodged and fed for four
consecutive days and nights, while they
were seeking work. This would not en-
courage loafers and psupers.
Mr.. Gould cannot go amiss for worthy
objects Of charity. They lie all around
him-they confront him at every step.
II he really feels that much Of his wealth
Is useless to him-that 1t only burdens
MIN with Increase OF cares, why does he
continue to graspi IL tightly and refuse
10 devote some OF IL to charityP Man Is
\ singular sort OF compOund-a bundle
Of contradictions-a magazine Of incon-
.istencies. do not bOuOt but
that Jay Gould was perfectly sincere
when he made the remark quoted at the
beginning Of this article. SO was Solo
mon sincere when he exclaimed, that all
was vanity and yexstion OF spirit, but he
nevertheless harbored no thought OF re
signing his crown. his riches and his
nultiIudinous wives and concublnes
Neither had jaw could the faintrst idea
fpartlng with any Of his superiority OF
ches. Men rrcOil from parting with
Inpir wealth. The desire OF Accumula-
tion 10 Unsuitable, and grows more IN
pnse with each fresh accum IlatiOn. A.
shakespeare says, appetite grows BY
Whist IL feeds upon" and this is the die
tinRu'shing characteristic of ssaric-, ~
the more riches one heaps up, the NOR"
ivarIce grows Samuel j. riIden. nj hi.
rlpath, left seven millions of dollars, but
in his life time, he used none OF IL 10 re-
ieve his wi,l"sed sisters. who needed
si-tsncr. He cuu d not part with hIs
money while the reath was In his BODY
tie chung 10 his mun-y Til death lu"--
ehed hi- grasp upon IL. Ii WAS the snm~
nase win A. L. Stewart. Jay q uld II
not likely TO prove al excepTio" Ia the
general rule. Leland Stanford, after the
death Of his only son, endowed q col
lrge. but for the death Of his son, he
would have retained II till death.
The rich rarely regard themselves as
hut the trustees OF heaven for the proper
employment Of their wealth | relieving
human WA and suffering. They too
often beTrny an entire want OF sympa
thy with their fellow beings and envelnp
themselves |, the folds of seltishness.
Mem Ia medium circumstances display
the greatest charity and benrvUlence
rhe history Of the world bears attesta-
ton to this fact. Jay Gould 10 conscious
that his sup-riuity Of wealth adds moth
ing TO his com 'Ort, hut sIill he is unwill-
/ Z to part with what he cannot use.
IoNEY.